Botanical exploration: B.S.I., its organization and role, Plant explorations

Botanical exploration: B.S.I., its organization and role, Plant explorations:-

Botanical Survey of India (BSI):- The Botanical Survey of India (BSI) was established in 1890 with the objectives of exploring the plant resources of the country and identifying plant species with economic virtue. In 1954, the Government reorganised the BSI.

Objectives of Botanical Survey of India:-

i. Survey of Plant resources of the country for preparing an inventory of the plant wealth in the form of National, Regional and District Floras.

ii. Development of the Central National Herbarium and the various Regional Herbaria as repositories of the Types and other authentic specimens.

iii. Development of the Indian Botanic Garden, the Regional Experimental Gardens the National Orchidaria, for the study, introduction and conservation of flora.

iv. Development of the Central Botanical Laboratory and Botanical Section of the Indian Museum for experimental studies on plants and popularising their role in our lives.

v. Assessment and care of threatened plants and studies on little known or new uses of plants particularly among rural and tribal societies.

Organization of Botanical Survey of India:- The Directorate is the Survey of located at the Indian Botanic Garden, Howrah, and is headed by a Director. He is assisted by a Joint Director, a Deputy Director, a Senior Administrative Officer and Senior Scientists in charge of various divisions. The scientific, technical and administrative units of the Directorate run broadly as follows.

i. Scientific:- Flora, Ecology, Cryptogams, Plant chemistry, Pharmacognosy.

ii. Technical:- Publication, Documentation and Library, Drawing and Photography.

iii. Administrative:- Establishments, Accounts, Administration, Stores, Security. Besides the Directorate there are the Central Botanical Laboratory, Central National Herbarium and Indian Botanic Garden at Howrah. Industrial Section, Indian Museum, is located at Calcutta.

1. Headquarters Organisation Howrah:- The Headquarters Organisation is the central coordinating office of the Survey in addition to the administrative wing and the other Divisions of the Headquarter’s Office are:

1. Ecology 

2. Cryptogamic Botany 

3. Plant Chemistry 

4. Pharmacognosy 

5. Flora wing 

6. Publication 

7. Documentation 

8. Technical, each under the charge of a Senior Scientist. 

The annual programme of work and botanical explorations are planned in consultation with the Regional Offices.

2. Central Botanical Laboratory, Howarh:- The Central Botanical Laboratory came into existence on April 13, 1954 to conduct research on various disciplines of Botany with Cytology, Economic Botany and Plant Physiology as three major Sections.

3. Central National Herbarium, Howrah:- 

> The Central National Herbarium (Cal) is India’s largest Herbarium with about 15,00,000 specimens. There is a large collection of Icones, of which the 2583 hand-coloured illustrations,, forming the Roxburgh Icones, takes the pride of place.

> It was founded by William Roxburgh who started its nucleus in 1793 in the East India Company’s botanical garden at Sibpur. Due to the vigorous efforts of N. Wallich, W. Griffith, Buchanan-Hamilton, H. Falconer, Thomson, T. Thomson, T. Anderson, C. B. Clarke, G. King, D. Prain, A. T. Gage and C. C. Calder, collections from different parts of British India gradually grew to a sizeable number.

> Exchange with different botanical institutions in Europe, America, Australia, China and Japan further increased the collections.

> The Herbarium was transferred to the Botanical Survey in 1957 for development into a National Herbarium on modern lines. It has a General world Herbarium, and several Regional Herbaria to facilitate easy and quick identification of plants.

> The specimens are arranged according to Bentham and Hooker’s System of Classification (Genera Plantarum). 8000 type specimens (authentic specimens on which original descriptions of new plants are based) have been seggsegated and kept in specially safe conditions.

> ‘Flora of India’ is a major project of the Survey which will be based chiefly on these collections for presenting an inventory of the plant wealth of the country. A Palynology Units is attached to the herbarium.

4. Indian Botanic Garden, Howrah:- 

> The Indian Botanic Garden is in its bicentenary year started by Robert Kyd in 1787, organised by William Roxburgh and developed by Nathaniel Wallich, the Garden occupies an area of 110 hectares on the bank of the river Hooghly. It has nearly 12,000 live specimens including a large collection of bamboos, cycads and palms.

> It has two large green houses, several nurseries and Special collections of Bougainvillea, Vits, Jasminum and Nymphaea. The giant water lilies like Victoria amazonica and V. cruziana are conspicuous in some of the garden ponds. The Great Banyan tree with its large spread and over a thousand proproots looking like a forest in itself is a famous landmark.

5. Northern Circle, Dehradun:- 

> The Northern Circle was established in 1956 at Dehradun. It includes the States of Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi and 24 districts of Uttar Pradesh covering the hilly areas. There are 65,000 specimens representing about 5,000 species, mostly from the hitherto poorly explored N. W. Himalayan areas and 14 type specimens in the Herbarium.

> Alectra parasitica A. Rich. Var. Chitrakutensis Rau a rare parasitic shrub, discovered by the circle is reported to be useful in treatment of leprosy.

6. Eastern Circle, Shillong:-

> The Eastern Circle was established in 1956 at Shillong. The circle covers the states of Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. The circle is headed by a Deputy Director. The circle has the National Orchidarium at Shillong and Experimental Garden at Barapani.

> The Regional Herbarium has at present 1,15,000 specimens.

> The establishment of a National Orchidarium at Shillong in 1961 was another landmark of the circle; at present it houses 4000 rare and interesting orchids of the Eastern Himalayas.

7. Southern Circle, Coimbatore:-

> The Southern Circle at Coimbatore was established in 1955. This comprises the states of Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The old Madras Herbarium with nearly 90,000 valuable collection of Gamble, Fischer etc., on the Flora of Madras Presidency, was transferred to this circle in 1957. There are about 1,90,000 specimens including 1608 types.

> Preliminary assessment of the importance and significance of the flora and vegetation of the Silent Valley, Kerala, was made by the scientists of the circle.

8. Western Circle, Pune:- 

> The Western Circle was established in 1956 at Poona. It covers the states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Union territories of Goa, Laccadive and Minicoy islands. The old collections of Cooke and Talbot from the Agricultural College, Pune, were transferred to this herbarium in 1956 which consists of about 13,500 specimens including 474 types. The Regional herbarium has now 1,25,000 specimens.

> The Flora of Goa, Daman Diu and Nagarhaveli and a check list of vascular plants of Gujarat state are some of the major scientific contributions of this circle.

9. Central Circle, Allahabad:-

> Central Circle was established in 1962 at Allahabad. This covers the states of Madhya Pradesh and the plain districts of Uttar Pradesh. The herbarium has a collection of about 50,000 specimens.

> Studies on the district floras of Durg, Raipur, Rajanandgaon, Damoh and Bilaspur have been completed and work on other districts of Madhya Pradesh is in progress.

10. Arid zone Circle, Jodhpur:- 

> The Arid Zone Circle of the Botanical Survey of India, was set up in 1972 to study the flora and vegetation of the regions which are by and large arid. The areas include the entire State of Rajasthan, Districts of Bhatinda and Firozpur of Punjab, districts of Hissar, Mahendergarh and Gurgaon of Haryana, Delhi Ridge, districts of Mathura, Agra and Jhansi of Uttar Pradesh, districts of Morena, Bhind, Gwalior, Datia, Sivapuri, Guna, Mandasor, Ratlam and Jhabua of Madhya Pradesh and districts of Kutch, Banas Kantha, Mehsana, Sabar Kantha, Ahmedabad and all the districts of Saurastra from Gujrat. It is headed by a Regional Botanist. The Herbarium has about 10,000 specimens.

> The Flora of Rajasthan District Flora of Tonk and Banswara Flora of Agra District and Biodiversity of Desert National Park of Rajasthan have been published. Park of Rajasthan have been published.

11. Andaman & Nicobar Circle, Port Blair:- The Andaman and Nicobar Circle was started in 1972. The herbarium has now 20,000 specimens. Explorations were conducted in different islands of the Andaman, Car Nicobar, Kamorta, Nancowry and Great Nicobar islands of the Nicobars. Two genera and a number of new species/records have been described.

12. Sikkim-Himalaya Circle, Gangtok:- Sikkim-Himalaya Circle was started in 1979 at Gangtok to explore and study the rich vegetation and flora of Sikkim and adjacent areas. The herbarium has now 5000 specimens.

13. Arunachal Field Station, Itanagar:- A Field Station at New Itanagar was started in 1977 to study the unexplored areas of north-eastern India. The herbarium has 6000 specimens, collected principally from Subansiri and Kameng districts.

Role of Botanical Survey of India:-

i. Sustained utilization of our plant resources is the watchword for the survey and multipronged efforts are made to conserve plants. Practical steps for regulating trade in endangered species are regularly suggested to the Agriculture Department. Areas of rich biological diversity are studied at Silent Valley (Kerala), Namdapha (Arunachal Pradesh), Similipal (Orissa), Nanda Devi (Uttar Pradesh), Dechigam (Kashmir), Valley of Flowers (Uttar Pradesh) etc. and steps taken for their conservation.

ii. Preserving the diversity of flora and fauna and conservation of individual species of flora which are facing threat or danger of extinction in a major area of interest to the Survey.

iii. Sanctuaries have been set up in forest areas for selected plants like the curious carnivorous pitcher plant (Nepenthes khasiana Hook. F.) in Meghalaya, and beautiful Rhododendrons and Orchids in Sikkim and Darjeeling Himalayas.

iv. Botanical gardens play a very important role in conservation, education, research and recreation. The Indian Botanic Garden at Sibpur, largest in the country, is maintained and developed by the Survey. In addition, a number of smaller gardens have been established at Pauri (Uttar Pradesh), Allahabad, Mundwa near Pune, Yercaud (Shevaroy Hills, Tamilnadu), Barapani (Meghalaya) and Dhani Kari near Port Blair. All these gardens give special emphasis to the conservation of rare plants.

v. The Survey assists in teaching and research activities in the country by identifying selected botanical specimens, and also by supplying samples of authentic materials.

vi. The Survey maintains close collaboration with Universities, Research Organisations, such as Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, Indian council of Agricultural Research, Forest Research Institute, Forest Departments of the states and several Herbaria and botanical gardens of the world.